Where are they now? - Perch

[Lost]

Fishing for sunnies today, I hooked into several perch. Are the Perch also spawning shallow with the sunnies this time of year? Will the jumbo's be done spawning already or is that still to come?

[hip_hop_fisherman]

I also have been picking up perch in with the crappies and sunnies lately. I've noticed they've been running larger than average also, at least for the lake I'm fishing. Maybe there is something to this?

[Matt Breuer]

Perch will move up into the shallows and spawn almost immediately after the ice goes. The "jumbo" females won't be there long, but the males will inhabit the area for quite some time.

The 'gills have a ways to go, as do the crappies, but they're in putting on the feedbags, which is probably why you're picking them up together.

[Lost]

Thanks for the info guys. Where would they normally be found after opener? I don't know why I want to chase the perch... maybe just for the challenge... especially since I'm 100% CPR.

[Matt Breuer]

After the spawn the perch will disperse and can be found in various depths, much less concentrated. You'll pick up some perch while walleye fishing around opener. Then, when the weeds get thick enough to hide in, the jumbos can often times be found in large numbers mixed in beds of cabbage or humps holding a concentration of coontail. They can also be found in deeper water, but they're much easier to target in the weeds, and numbers can be high!

[hip_hop_fisherman]

Excellent info!

[Lost]

Thanks again Matt for supplying excellent info for us.